Punjab Congress leaders have expressed anguish over the Centre’s recent notification regarding new police rules, bringing the post of Deputy Superintendent of Police of Chandigarh within the ambit of the DANIPS cadre.
While State Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu and MP Pratap Singh Bajwa have written separate letters to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh asking him to reconsider the decision, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said he would take up the issue with the Prime Minister soon.
‘Foundation shaken’
In his letter, Mr. Sidhu said the decision shakes the very foundation and purpose of the Punjab Reorganisation Act and the Rajiv-Longowal Accord.
“…by way of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, the erstwhile State of Punjab was bifurcated by the formation of a new State, namely the State of Haryana, and also the Union Territory of Chandigarh. The aforesaid Reorganisation Act also envisaged that from the said appointed date, which was to be the 1st day of November, 1966, all assets and liabilities were to be bifurcated between Punjab and Haryana in the ratio of 60:40. The 60:40 rule, in respect of various cadres of officers allocated to Chandigarh, has become a binding convention and is being followed religiously since then,” wrote Mr. Sidhu.
He added that by the Centre’s latest notification, the legitimate and existing binding convention of 60:40 has been unjustifiably taken away from the people of Punjab.
Mr. Bajwa pointed out that law and order was a State subject and as such the core issue of transfer of Chandigarh to Punjab should have been decided first before notifying these new police rules.
